Scaling Freelance

Scaling Freelance

By Sean CroweBusiness
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Scaling Freelance episodes

  • 013: Go from agency employee to full-time freelancer with this 3 month plan w/ Nicholas Moegly

    Our guest today is Nicholas Moegly. He is an illustrator and graphic designer that creates gig posters and album art for the music industry. He's located in Cincinnati, Ohio and has worked with several Grammy award winning artists.

    Nicholas and I talk about

    • What it's like running a super lean freelance business.
    • Why he decided to start contracting out specific parts of his business.
    • Nicholas's three month plan for quitting his agency job and going full-time freelance
    • How to get clients while you have a full-time job

      • Freelancer Fav Five

      1. Revenue
        2. - July 2019
      2. Books
        3. - Tools of Titans by Tim Ferris
      3. Software
        4. - Caato Time Tracker

        Guest Info

        @nicholasmoely - IG

        nicholasmoegly.com

        43 min
      4. 012: The money-making effects of retainer contracts w/ Bizzy Coy
        Show Notes

        Our guest today is Bizzy Coy! Bizzy is a freelance writer based out of the woods in upstate New York. She writes website copy, emails, and event description. This was an amazing episode where we dig into a lot of the nitty gritty details of her freelance business!

        Bizzy and I talk about

        • Her path from Full-time agency employee -> full-time remote -> part-time freelance -> full-time freelance!
        • Why her pricing model right now is retainer-based
        • How to work with small number of clients on a consistent basis
        • Getting to a point where you don't have to chase clients
        • What a retainer agreement actually looks like
        • Time tracking sucks! Here's how to stop doing it.
        • Long-term relations are so much better than one-off projects
        • How to handle burn out on agency life, city life, commutes, and giant mice

          • Freelancer Fav Five

          1. Revenue
            2. - $24k
          2. Books
            3. - Setting the Table by Danny Meyer
          3. Software
            4. - Strikingly
            - Headspace
          4. People
            5. - Kristen Gaerlan (Website | Twitter)

            Guest Info

            Bizzy Coy

            http://www.bizzycoy.com

            31 min
          5. 011: The best thing you can do right now to get more clients w/ Shannon Colón

            Our guest today is Shannon Colón! Her work mainly focuses on branding for startups and entrepreneurs. She also does product design for mobile apps and web apps. She's been freelancing full-time for 7 years and is based out of Providence, Rhode Island.

            Shannon and I talk about:

            • What it was like quitting her job to figure out how to freelance full-time
            • Why there's never a perfect time to quit your job
            • How to hire your previous employer to get your first freelance client.
            • How joining a co-working space was 'monumental' for getting more clients.
            • What to do when you have no projects lined up.
            • How to raise your rates as a freelancer
            • Day rates, weekly rates, hourly, value-baed. All of the pricing goodness
            • How Shannon takes a 1 month long vacation without clients getting mad

              • Freelancer Fav Five

              1. Best Month of Revenue
                2. - In the 5 digits
              2. Book Recommendations
                3. - Four Hour Work Week
                - Rework
              3. Software Recommendations
                4. - Notion.so
                - Harvest - Invoicing/Time Tracking
              4. People to Follow
                5. - @Naval
                21 min
              5. 010: Start looking in these three places to generate more freelance clients w/ Jake Kahana

                On today's show we have Jake Kahana! He is an artist and teacher helping people thrive in a world overrun by distractions by leading them in 'unlearning' bad habits and replacing them with new ones. He is a freelance UX/UI designer and runs his startup CaveDay on the side.

                Jake and I talk about:

                • How hourly pricing can actual make you LESS money in the long run
                • Why getting fired was the catalyst to being a freelancer
                • How Jake funds his business CaveDay with his freelancing work
                • The three main places that Jake generates freelance leads from
                • The typical day for Jake

                  • Freelancer Fav Five

                  1. Best Month of Revenue
                    2. $24,000
                  2. Book Recommendations
                    3. The War of Art by Steven Pressfield
                    Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert
                  3. Software Recommendations
                    4. MixMax
                    Calendly
                  4. People to Follow
                    5. Jason Fried/DHH
                    David Cain

                    Guest Info:

                    https://www.jakekahana.com/

                    LinkedIn

                    31 min
                  5. 009: The importance of value-based pricing for freelancers w/ Jessica Jones

                    Joining me on today’s episode of Scaling Freelance is Jessica Jones, a freelance designer based out of Cincinnati, Ohio. Her work primarily on brand identity designs and surface pattern design. 

                    Jessica and I discuss:

                    • How Jessica gets the major of her freelance clients through SEO
                    • What is a Brand Identity freelancer?
                    • How to make the jump from full-time job to full-time freelancer
                    • How to manage multiple projects at the same time.
                    • Why increasing your freelance rate is crucial to your business
                    • Value-based pricing vs hourly

                      • Book Recommendations:

                      1. Designers Guide to Marketing and Pricing

                        2. Software Recommendations:

                        1. 17 Hats

                          2. People to Follow:

                          1. Nicholas Moegly

                            2. Guest Info:

                            Jessica Jones

                            http://jessicajonesdesign.com


                            25 min
                          2. 008: The ONLY two things freelancers need to focus on to succeed w/ Devesh Khanal

                            Joining me on today’s episode of Scaling Freelance is Devesh Khanal. Devesh is the Co-founder of Grow and Convert and the CEO of Growth Rock. He got his start freelancing and transitioned into growing two agencies. Growth Rock increases conversion rates for 7 and 8-figure online businesses through A/B testing anduser research. They have deep expertise in optimization and user experience of ecommerce and SaaS business in particular.


                            Devesh and I discuss:

                            • How to successfully manage a remote team
                            • Why hiring can be SO hard
                            • What your first hires should be and how to think about it
                            • Why Virtual Assistants don't work for him
                            • Product Market fit
                            • Finding a repeatable channel for

                              • Book Recommendations:

                              1. Small Giants
                              2. It Doesn't Have to Be Crazy at Work
                              3. Company of One by Paul Jarvis

                                4. Tool Recommendations:

                                1. Trello
                                2. Basecamp

                                  3. People to Follow:

                                  1. Brian Harris at Growth Tools

                                    2. Guest Info:

                                    growandconvert.com

                                    growthrock.co

                                    https://www.linkedin.com/in/deveshkhanal/

                                    46 min
                                  2. 007: Leaving your 9-5 job to go full-time freelance w/ Eléna Potter + Kate Busby

                                    Joining me on today’s episode of Scaling Freelance is Eléna Potter and Kate Busby. Eléna is a freelance designer and illustrator in Chicago and Kate is a freelance web developer who is remote in Lisbon right now. They came together to form the boutique web design studio, fittingly called Busby-Potter. And by teaming up, they offer start to finish websites with Eléna handling the design and Kate handling development.


                                    Eléna, Kate and I discuss:

                                    • How they quit their 9-5 to become full-time freelancers
                                    • How to get clients as a new freelancer
                                    • Hourly vs Value-based pricing (and why this can make you $$$$)
                                    • What it’s like being a nomadic freelancer
                                    • Why they decided to partner up instead of staying solo-freelancers.


                                      • Book Recommendations:

                                      1. Run Studio Run by Eli Altman 
                                      2. Creative Strategy and the Business of Design 
                                      3. Breaking the Time Barrier


                                        4. Software Recommendations:

                                        1. Slack
                                        2. Zeplin
                                        3. Harvest
                                        4. TeuxDeux by Tina Roth-Eisenberg


                                          5. People to Follow:

                                          1. https://clientsfromhell.net (blog and podcast)
                                          2. http://www.ghostlyferns.com (IG )


                                            3. Guest Info:

                                            Kate Busby

                                            Eléna Potter
                                            Website - Busby-Potter
                                            Instagram - @BUSBYPOTTER

                                            44 min
                                          3. 006: How to work for 6 weeks, then take off for 2 w/ Joe Martin

                                            Joining me on today’s episode of Scaling Freelance is Joe Martin. Joe recently published a book for entrepreneurs and business owners, 6-week cycles which offers a new perspective on productivity, corporate culture, and an understanding that family should always come first. 

                                            Joe and I discuss:

                                            • Why nurturing your clients is so important to boost referrals
                                            • Branding as yourself vs a company name
                                            • How to work for 6 weeks and then take off for 2 weeks
                                            • How Joe got is first few clients

                                              • Book Recommendations:

                                              1. 6-week Cycles by Joe Martin
                                              2. ReWork by Jason Fried

                                                3. Tool Recommendations:

                                                1. Dropbox Paper

                                                  2. People to Follow:

                                                  1. Joanna Wiebe

                                                    2. Guest Info:

                                                    http://hijoemartin.com

                                                    http://6weekcycles.com

                                                    36 min
                                                  2. 005: How creative freelancers can scale their business w/ Abbey Woodcock

                                                    Joining me on today’s episode of Scaling Freelance is Abbey Woodcock. She is a freelance copywriter that has been featured in some of the largest brands online. Over the years, she's developed systems and strategies that have boosted her revenue beyond what she imagined. Aside from freelancing, she also started freelancecoop.org to help make creativity sustainable. 

                                                    Abbey and I discuss:

                                                    • How to get your first freelance copywriting clients
                                                    • Going to networking events can CHANGE your freelance business
                                                    • Why you should NOT tell your first client that they are your first client
                                                    • What you should actually DO at networking events to get business
                                                    • How to network as an introvert

                                                      • Book Recommendations:

                                                      1. Never Lose a Customer Again by Joey Coleman
                                                      2. Design is a Job by Mike Monteiro

                                                        3. Tool Recommendations:

                                                        1. Seventeen Hats

                                                          2. People to Follow:

                                                          1. Justin Blackman
                                                          2. Allison Carpio

                                                            3. Guest Info:

                                                            https://onlifeandwriting.com

                                                            http://freelancecoop.org


                                                            36 min
                                                          3. 004: Learning how to code to six-figure freelancer w/ Jessica Chan from Coder-Coder

                                                            Joining me on today’s episode of Scaling Freelance is Jessica Chan, the founder of Coder-Coder. She got her start out in web development at an advertising agency. She went full-time freelance in June 2018 and has since launched a tutorial site to help people how to code! 

                                                            Jessica and I discuss:

                                                            • How to learn how to code on your own
                                                            • What it's like going from 9-5 to full-time freelancer
                                                            • Selling digital goods like courses and e-books

                                                              • Book Recommendations:

                                                              1. The Science of Selling by David Hoffeld
                                                              2. Authority by Nathan Barry

                                                                3. Software Recommendations:

                                                                1. Trello

                                                                  2. People to Follow:

                                                                  1. Nathan Barry
                                                                  2. Indie Hackers
                                                                  3. Smart Passsive Income

                                                                    4. Guest Info:

                                                                    http://coder-coder.com


                                                                    26 min

                                                                  About Scaling Freelance

                                                                  From the publisher's feed

                                                                  Scaling Freelance is all about the business side of freelancing. We uncover the tips, tricks, and strategies from the most successful freelancers around the world. The freedom of working for yourself, setting your own schedule, and making tons of money doing it is incredible. Let’s do this together.